


Rememble (aka Suitcase of Memories)

by onceuponafewtimes



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: AU, BAMF!Lu Han, Drama, Drinking, M/M, Mentions of Sex, Romance, World Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-12
Updated: 2014-01-12
Packaged: 2018-01-08 13:03:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 18,165
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1132977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onceuponafewtimes/pseuds/onceuponafewtimes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>From Asia, to Europe, to America, and back - a year in the making. Love will feel the same anywhere, even in different countries.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rememble (aka Suitcase of Memories)

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the 2012 sncj_santa fic exchange.

**January  
South Korea**  
  
“This was a bad idea,” Kyungsoo muttered. Baekhyun didn’t spare him a glance, deep in thought as he flowed with the crowd. Out here, it was easy to forget who he was. No one seemed to know him – on these streets, he was just an average person, someone who wasn’t important and didn’t matter. People jostled against him, and he could dimly hear Kyungsoo muttering some English curse words as he stumbled to keep up.  
  
Baekhyun pulled his collar up, covering his mouth as he shoved his hands deep into his coat pockets, where they were safe and at least slightly warm. The temperature was chilly at best (good thing it wasn’t snowing), and even in the warmth of his coat he wished he’d brought a scarf. His neck was feeling just a tad bit too cold for his tastes.  
  
“This was a  _very_  bad idea,” Kyungsoo continued, struggling to get to Baekhyun’s side once they finally hit a corner. People around them waited in an impatient manner for the pedestrian light to allow them to go. Every once in awhile, a person or two decided to ditch the light, jaywalking when the stream of cars seemed to have stopped.  
  
Baekhyun decided to wait it out. He wasn’t exactly in a hurry to get back to the resort, anyway.  
  
“What if we get mauled, or robbed, or even  _kidnapped_?” Kyungsoo fussed, hands fluttering uselessly in the air. Baekhyun sighed, finally turning his head to pin his friend with a stare. Kyungsoo grumpily stared back. He obviously wasn’t enjoying this outing as much as Baekhyun was.  
  
“You’re being too paranoid,” Baekhyun dismissed after a second, shooting the other a half-smile. “We’ve been out on the streets since daylight and nothing’s happened yet. Besides, isn’t it more exciting this way?”  
  
“What about this is exciting, exactly?” Kyungsoo grumbled, screwing up his nose like he always did when something didn’t go his way. Nearby, a car honked. Kyungsoo jumped as if startled by the noise. He always had been too suspicious for his own good. Then again, that was the life of a rich person for you - especially Kyungsoo, who had gotten kidnapped about four times only to be ransomed away for money.  
  
Baekhyun kept telling Kyungsoo to take up aikido like he had, but did his best friend ever listen? Noooo.  
  
“Please,” Baekhyun snorted, turning away. “Why did you even come with me today if you were going to complain about it the entire time we were out?” He resisted the urge to roll his eyes, tapping his foot against the concrete as he patiently waited.  
  
“Because I’m your best friend,” Kyungsoo said tartly. “Though I’m beginning to think that was bad judgment on my part to even befriend you in the first place. Seriously, we’re going to get  _skinned alive_  by the time we get back. We were supposed to attend a business party an hour ago, just in case you forgot.” Kyungsoo was getting a little huffy with him, Baekhyun noted with amusement. And a huffy Kyungsoo was a funny Kyungsoo.  
  
Baekhyun held in a snicker, moving forward with the rest of the people when the cross sign finally changed green. “Oh, come on. You can’t say you aren’t happy you ditched it.” After all, if they hadn’t ditched it, they both would’ve had to suffer through people throwing themselves at them. Not that it wasn’t a regular occurrence or anything, but sometimes the greedy people became too much to deal with.  
  
Kyungsoo had nothing to say to that, instead just turning away from Baekhyun like the pampered prince he was.  
  
Well, pampered corporate prince, anyway.  
  
The night was young. Baekhyun lifted his head enough to suck in crisp, cold air, effectively freezing his throat. He smiled. It was nice to run away and pretend to be a normal twenty-two year old sometimes.  
  
“Should we get a taxi back?” Baekhyun wondered out loud, eyeing the roads thoughtfully. He’d never used a taxi before. The experience was surely one he didn’t want to miss.  
  
“No!” Kyungsoo croaked, his eyes wide. His head bobbled. “I heard stories about taxis.” He whispered this, as if it was an insider secret that shouldn’t be told lightly. “About how… _defiled_ …they are.” He nodded and raised his eyebrows meaningfully to the line of taxis up ahead.  
  
“Seriously, ‘soo?” Baekhyun rolled his eyes, already moving forward to the edge of the sidewalk. “You pick now to be a germaphobe? Where did that adventurous spirit of yours go after you turned ten?”  
  
“No! I refuse to go into that dirty thing of an automobile!” Kyungsoo shook his head wildly, catching Baekhyun’s arm and tugging him back to middle of the sidewalk.  
  
Baekhyun frowned, pulling both himself and Kyungsoo back towards the edge where all the taxis were waiting. “You’re over-exaggerating. I’m sure it’s not that bad.”  
  
Still, Kyungsoo continued to grip at Baekhyun’s arm.  
  
In the midst of the mini human tug-of-war on Baekhyun’s arm, something caught his eye. Baekhyun stopped just as Kyungsoo pulled roughly. Baekhyun found himself upright one moment, and the next lying on top of Kyungsoo. His elbow throbbed from where it connected with the concrete.  
  
Rolling off of his best friend, Baekhyun blinked up at the tree overhead, dazed. Next to him, Kyungsoo groaned.  
  
“You are  _so dumb_ ,” Baekhyun muttered without heat, still in a daze.  
  
“Sorry,” Kyungsoo muttered. A leaf fell onto Baekhyun’s forehead.  
  
Slowly, he sat up, wincing as he rubbed at his elbow. The people on the sidewalk were giving them wide berth, as if standing anywhere near them would give them some type of horrible disease. Baekhyun ignored them, long used to the judgmental stares. Instead, he looked around, wondering what had caught his eye.  
  
A lighted picture loomed in front of him, beautiful and exquisite in its simplicity. It took his breath away. He had always had a soft spot for good art. The photographer of this picture had a good eye.  
  
Kyungsoo sat up soon after, hair poking in random directions. As fun as it would have been to make fun of his friend’s hair, Baekhyun didn’t. He couldn’t stop from staring fuzzily at the picture.  
  
“My hands are bleeding,” Kyungsoo complained, pushing himself to stand up with a wince. Kyungsoo shoved his hands in front of Baekhyun, as if silently demanding some attention. Baekhyun looked at them. There were only a few minor scratches on his palms.  
  
“Poor baby,” Baekhyun muttered, finally looking up at Kyungsoo. Kyungsoo’s hands didn’t look bad at all. Baekhyun held out a hand of his own, waiting. “Did you want some milk with your band-aid or-”  
  
“Shut up,” Kyungsoo said, pulling Baekhyun to his feet with a grimace.  
  
Baekhyun smiled, glancing absently over Kyungsoo’s shoulder to where the picture laid. At the edge of the picture, a little signature was scrawled messily. It was barely legible, but Baekhyun had read enough messy hand-written reports to decipher the writing.  
  
 _Park Chanyeol_.  
  
Baekhyun filed that name away absentmindedly, tugging on Kyungsoo’s hand toward the cab line.  
  
Kyungsoo didn’t seem to realize what was happening at first. However, by the time they reached the edge of the sidewalk, he was already back to protesting. Baekhyun paid his friend no heed, opening the closest taxi door he could find. The inside of the taxi seemed to be the same as any car – to him, anyway. However, the small glimpse of the insides of the taxi made Kyungsoo struggle even more.  
  
“HIV!” Kyungsoo shriek-whispered. “I’ll get HIV, and die, and you’re not invited to my funeral!”  
  
“Don’t care,” Baekhyun said cheerfully, pushing Kyungsoo into the car before getting in himself. To the driver, he said, “Hello! Can you take us to the Yinhe Resort, please? The one about fifteen miles from here?” The driver’s eyes flicked to the still complaining Kyungsoo. Baekhyun happily shut him up by slapping a hand over Kyungsoo’s lips, which seemed to make his friend shriek even more. Who knew where his hand had been? Baekhyun wondered to himself with a grin. “Don’t mind my friend here, he’s just being dumb.”  
  
Warily, the taxi driver nodded. Baekhyun glanced outside, and caught a quick glimpse of the beautiful picture before the car pulled away.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **February  
France**  
  
Even from nine stories up, the clamor of the streets could be heard.  
  
He imagined himself out there as well, running around on the streets, eating cheese and having a three hour dinner. Baekhyun heaved a silent sigh, resisting the urge to tap his pencil against the table.  
  
At the other end of the table, a man with a heavy French accent continued to speak in English. Rubbing at his tired eyes, he made an effort to listen to what the man was saying.  
  
Unfortunately, all Baekhyun heard was, “Blah blah blah presentation blah.”  
  
Oh, how he hated meetings. Here he was, holed up in some dumb office, waiting like a little boy for when the final school bell would ring and release him from torment. School never had been his thing, if he were entirely honest. Graduation had been just about the best thing that had happened to him.  
  
He’d finally escaped that torment... only for it to be replaced by a new one.  
  
Looking up from his blank notepad, he muffled a snicker when he saw his friend, Zitao, fast asleep. In fact, if Baekhyun listened closely, he could almost  _hear_  Tao snuffling. What a panda. Baekhyun glanced around furtively before he slid down in his chair slightly to kick at Tao’s shins. After all, if Baekhyun had to suffer through this, Tao had to also.  
  
Tao snorted, bolting upright in his chair. “Huh, what?” he asked out loud, interrupting the presentation.  
  
The room grew silent. Baekhyun mustered all the experience he’d gained to make his face expressionless. Tao turned pink after a quick look around and sat back down slowly, rearranging his features into something more peeved and haughty.  
  
“Never mind,” Tao said cooly. Baekhyun almost burst out laughing at this point. “Continue on with the presentation.”  
  
The man talking up front spared Tao a slightly disturbed glance from behind his spectacles before tentatively resuming. When all had finally turned away, Tao let his eyes go wide, as if wondering what had woken him up. Baekhyun hunched in on himself, which seemed to draw Tao’s attention. Baekhyun quickly avoided looking at him.  
  
A piece of paper slid across the table a minute later.  
  
 _Revenge shall be taken. Beware._  
  
Baekhyun bit his lip to stop himself from laughing. Below it, he wrote;  
  
 _We both know who the winner of this fight will be._  
  
Then he managed to slip it across the table. The note returned a moment later.  
  
 _Yeah, me._  
  
Baekhyun merely rolled his eyes.  
  
  
  
  
  
“Oh man, I would not enjoy being Tao right now,” Kyungsoo said sympathetically after Baekhyun retold what had happened during the meeting. Their waiter slowly filled their glasses with red wine, but both paid no attention to him. After nodding a quick thanks and dismissing the man, Baekhyun reached across the table to grab the pepper shaker, rattling it above his various plates.  
  
“Well, it happens a lot so I doubt he’ll be in much trouble,” Baekhyun said distractedly as he picked up his knife to inspect the edge. The sharp edge gleamed in the dim light. Deeming it good enough, he set the napkin across his lap, picked up his fork, and cut his meat up to small bits and pieces.  
  
The aroma wafted up to his nose, and Baekhyun practically salivated right there. Man, it’d been awhile since he had eaten in France.  
  
There was a quiet murmur of voices in the restaurant and as Baekhyun glanced up from his meat, he noted that many of the patrons looked riched. In fact, he could spot a famous celebrity or two - and was that a business associate from America at the far end of the restaurant? All in all, everyone looked glamorous and stuck up.  
  
He pressed his lips together, willing it to not spoil his mood as he turned his attention back to the food on the table.  
  
“That’s true,” Kyungsoo said after swallowing down some pasta. He’d started eating as well. Actually, Baekhyun thought as he eyes Kyungsoo’s plates, his friends was practically a fourth done with his food. “I guess I’d keep falling asleep during meetings too if the punishments got repetitive.”  
  
“I think it’s a blessing Tao can fall asleep during meetings,” Baekhyun mumbled around the food in his mouth. He smirked when Kyungsoo made a slightly disgusted face at him. Swallowing and taking a sip of the red wine, he cleared his throat and continued, “I mean, if I were comfortable enough to sleep around old men and not be bothered by it, I totally would.”  
  
Kyungsoo made a strange sound in the back of his throat. Baekhyun watched with amusement as his friend’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down in an attempt to finish swallowing whatever he’d been eating. The waiter popped out of seemingly nowhere to ask if Kyungsoo was okay as he set down some cheese, refilled their barely touched wine glasses, and left again.  
  
Finally, without any prying ears to hear, Kyungsoo glared at him and glanced around. “You need to lower your voice,” his friend whispered furiously, slightly red in the face. “People might get the wrong idea if they hear you talking like that.”  
  
“What?” Baekhyun asked, raising his voice imperceptibly. “People might think I sleep with old men?” He snickered when Kyungsoo almost melted into his seat by embarrassment before rolling his eyes. “Relax. No one even glanced our way when I said that.”  
  
And it was true. As he watched the others in the restaurant, it was clear that no one cared. They were all in their own little bubbles to notice anything else.  
  
“I hate it when you do whatever you want just so you can make your point,” Kyungsoo muttered, grumpily munching on the cheese the waiter had left them. Baekhyun stared at him, watching the way his friend’s cheeks seemed to expand.  
  
“You look like some kind of hamster when you do that,” Baekhyun noted out loud, leaning closer to Kyungsoo to take a look. Kyungsoo seemed to freeze up when Baekhyun poked his left cheek. Baekhyun continued to poke his cheek until Kyungsoo slowly turned exasperated.  
  
“Will you stop that?” Kyungsoo snapped, batting Baekhyun’s hand away.  
  
“Aww, honey, are you embarrassed?” Baekhyun teased, grabbing some cheese of his own to nibble on. Kyungsoo rolled his eyes upward, as if he were praying for patience. He didn’t answer. Slowly, the smile disappeared from Baekhyun’s face, and he turned his head to glance outside the window. The Eiffel Tower always had been such a beautiful thing to look at, especially lit up at night like it was now.  
  
But what used to excite him did nothing but stir a faint feeling of wistfulness.  
  
He wondered to himself, exactly  _when_  had he stopped noticing such a stunning view?  
  
  
  
  
  
After they finished up their two and a half hour dinner (the waiter had insisted they stay for the dessert, the coffee, and the liquor before releasing them), Baekhyun and Kyungsoo wandered the streets.  
  
“Do you mind if we just go to the base of the Eiffel Tower?” Baekhyun had asked as they left the restaurant. He didn’t know why, but the urge had been there and he’d been helpless to do anything but follow it. Besides, maybe the little bit of walking could clear up the feeling of being bloated. He hadn’t eaten that much in a while.  
  
“Sure.” Curiosity had been plain on Kyungsoo’s face, but Baekhyun ignored it, quickly walking towards the large monument.  
  
The view from below was much different than from above, but no less stunning --  _breathtaking_. Chilled wind nipped at his face, his ears, and he huddled down into his warm coat, hands clenching around the hand warmers inside his pockets. He idly debated pulling his scarf up.  
  
He realized belatedly how far ahead he was compared to Kyungsoo, slowing down. Finally, with steam puffing from his own scarf, Kyungsoo pulled up next to Baekhyun, practically huffing.  
  
“Why are you even rushing?” Kyungsoo asked, a little peeved but mostly puzzled. He seemed worried now, for some odd reason.  
  
“So, when are you flying out?” Baekhyun asked, ignoring the question. Kyungsoo had told him earlier in the month that he’d have to leave Baekhyun to deal with a project happening over in the Bahamas. He hadn’t appeared to be too upset by it - given the choice, Kyungsoo would’ve taken the tropicals for France any day. Baekhyun couldn’t blame him since he would have done the same.  
  
“...” Kyungsoo looked torn when Baekhyun glanced at him. He heaved a sigh out, as if losing some inner debate, before answering. “I’m leaving next week.”  
  
“Oh,” Baekhyun said. He hadn’t known it’d be so soon...  
  
Up ahead, the Eiffel Tower continued to grow, blooming in front of their eyes. Around the base, Baekhyun could see the various millers and tourists taking shots of the gorgeous steel monstrosity. He smiled, remembering a time when he used to be exactly like that.  
  
Now was different though.  
  
He came to France frequently enough that the thought of taking pictures of the Eiffel Tower had lost interest. Why take so many pictures when he saw the same thing at least once a year?  
  
“Well, I suppose it’s for the best,” Baekhyun finally said, glancing at his best friend from the corner of his eye. “I’m supposed to get busy by the end of this week. We’re going to be finalizing the new changes soon.” He grimaced at the thought.  
  
The shadows grew light as they came to the base of the eiffel tower. Baekhyun pulled his scarf down, gazing upward. He saw Kyungsoo wander off, looking around as well. On the ground, the Eiffel Tower looked like it was touching the sky. If he closed his eyes and used his imagination, he could almost see the lights becoming little stars coming down from the heavens. They’d float down, falling to light a little path of -  
  
A flash of bright light caught him off guard.  
  
Baekhyun’s eyes sprang open, blinking in shock as he looked around. What was that? A second later, he found the source.  
  
A tall man around his age stood to his left, a camera fixated on Baekhyun’s face. Baekhyun narrowed his eyes. What in the world was that - Oh. Baekhyun’s glare became more venomous. Paparazzi?  
  
The camera lowered, and Baekhyun zeroed in on the man’s face, wanting to see who the perpetrator was. How  _dare_  he interrupt a calm and peaceful moment?  
  
The face that was revealed was nothing like Baekhyun had imagined though. He gazed at the man in slight surprise. He was rather good-looking, Baekhyun grudgingly admitted to himself.  
  
“Ah,” the man said, a slight accent to his voice. Korean? Or was that Japanese? Maybe Chinese? The man seemed a little embarrassed. “Sorry for taking your picture like that. I couldn’t resist though. It was a great shot.” And he smiled a big, cheesy grin that stretched across his entire face. Baekhyun stared until the smile faded.  
  
Baekhyun studied the man, eyes flickering to the man’s shoes. They were nice, but a little scuffed up at the edges. Decent enough, Baekhyun decided. The coat the man wore was a black leather, and it seemed to fit his frame to a tee. The pants, however, seemed rather loose. Too loose, in fact, for Baekhyun to do anything but wrinkle his nose in distaste. The man didn’t seem to scream ‘paparazzi’ as Baekhyun had initially dreaded, thankfully. Still, there was something rather fishy about the man that Baekhyun didn’t trust.  
  
A hand appeared in front of his nose unexpectedly. He went cross-eyed for a moment before catching himself, frowning over the hand to where the owner stood.  
  
Did he actually expect Baekhyun to  _shake hands_  with him?  
  
However, the longer Baekhyun glared at the man, the more determined the man seemed to become. Lips pressing into a straight, stubborn line, the man gazed at him as if silently willing Baekhyun to take his hand. Baekhyun snorted noiselessly and thought,  _Better luck next time_.  
  
They clashed, an inward battle of wills. Both of them were stubborn in their own rights. It was almost ridiculous how equally temperamental they were.  
  
The longer Baekhyun stared at the man, the longer something seemed strange and almost surreal about the moment grew. Anyone smart enough would’ve gone off with a huff after Baekhyun treated them like this, and yet here this man was, his hand patiently held in front of Baekhyun. Maybe he was an idiot or something.  
  
The lights from the Eiffel Tower almost looked like it was stretching down to slowly encase this handsome man with this hazy, golden glow. He could see himself reflected in the man’s brown eyes, which were so clearly and intently trained on Baekhyun.  
  
The scarf around Baekhyun’s throat suddenly felt hot and tight. He resisted the urge to pull it looser. He’d never seen someone so focused on him.  
  
Finally, grudgingly, Baekhyun’s hand slowly lifted. The man’s face lit up, becoming almost as bright as the lights overhead Baekhyun had to physically resist from squinting. Instead, he just stared in slight wonder. How could someone look so weirdly beautiful when they smiled?  
  
“My name is Chanyeol Park!” the man said happily, clasping Baekhyun’s hand with warm, gentle fingers. Baekhyun blinked, surprised by the Korean name. He supposed he shouldn’t have been so startled meeting Korean strangers in France, but... Well, he was. “I really am sorry about the random picture earlier. The scene was beautiful, and the photographer in me just couldn’t help it.”  
  
Against his will, Baekhyun’s mouth lifted in a small smile.  
  
“Baekhyun Byun,” he introduced himself, returning the gentle clasp of hands with a tiny squeeze before releasing Chanyeol’s hand. His fingertips immediately grew cold without another human’s touch, so Baekhyun quickly shoved his hands back into his warmed pockets.  
  
“I’m happy to meet you, Mr. Byun!”  
  
  
  
  
  
And hours later, when Baekhyun was lying in the bed of his private resort suite, the last thing he saw was the flash of Chanyeol’s smile before sleep claimed him.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **March  
China**  
  
“F-From this survey condu--cted last year around November...”  
  
As Baekhyun stared blankly at the back of the stuttering Chinese man’s head, he wondered if there was a way to get away from all of this. This was China, after all. There were bound to be a lot of hiding spots, right?  
  
If the need arose, he’d be willing to pay someone for their silence. Desperate times called for desperate measures. Baekhyun was in serious need of something interesting...and just maybe  _not_  business related.  
  
“And how much, exactly, will it cost to implement these ideas?” Baekhyun interrupted, twirling his pen boredly.  
  
Scratch that, it definitely had to be non-business related.  
  
“W-Well...” The man looked at him unsurely, murmuring a rather large number as he shrunk in on himself. He seemed intimidated. As he should, Baekhyun thought to himself dispassionately.  
  
“Hm,” Baekhyun hummed blandly, expression uninterested. So his father had been right about the Chinese branch. They were too loose with the funds. Well, Baekhyun supposed it was about time to crack down on the spending.  
  
“First off,” Baekhyun said, picking absentmindedly at his cufflinks, “Get rid of Plan B and Plan C. Those two are too pricey and extravagant for this resort specifically. This place is supposed to have a classy, welcoming feeling, so let’s keep it that way.”  
  
For a moment, no one moved. Baekhyun observed each member from under his lashes carefully, noting which people seemed approved and which didn’t. He resisted smiling at them with pity. Those who didn’t approve of what he suggested were going to end up jobless soon anyway.  
  
He got up, hoping the smile on his face didn’t look as frigid and wicked to the others the way it felt to him. He clapped his hands, and stopped the smirk from transforming his smile when he saw practically everyone jump.  
  
“Alright then,” he said, positively beaming now. “I presume we’re finished now?”  
  
“Ah, y-yes.”  
  
“Awesome,” Baekhyun said, pulling at his tie as he walked around the table. He slapped the man who had presented on the back in a friendly gesture and said, “Great presentation,” before he fled from the meeting room.  
  
Huffing a little to himself, Baekhyun loosened the tie until it felt comfortable around his neck and decided to wander around the resort. He’d conduct some of his own personal research with the guests staying there to see if the statistics for this morning’s meeting were true or not. He had a feeling a few of the things said had been overly exaggerated.  
  
Loud laughter interrupted his thoughts and Baekhyun stopped short when he saw who was laughing.  
  
What was  _he_  doing here? Baekhyun watched as the man, now in a suit, laughed with a few people that looked to be business associates. Hm.  
  
Baekhyun wracked his brain for the man’s name - it’d been a month ago since they had met in France. He remembered the warm hand, the gentle yet stubborn eyes, and the weird but blinding smile and yet...  
  
“Chan...or was it Chang? Well, it’s something Korean.” At least that much he remembered. The exact name continued to escape him though. “Chansung? Chansook? No, no, that isn’t it.”  
  
“Mr. Byun?” someone questioned from behind him hesitatingly. Baekhyun turned around to see a girl from the staff looking at him curiously. “Did you need help with anything, sir?”  
  
Immediately, Baekhyun smiled politely. He idly watched the girl blush before waving her off. “I’m fine, thank you.”  
  
As she turned to leave, an idea struck him. “Ah, actually... Who is that tall man in the lobby?” He pointed. The girl looked around, her eyes finally landing on who Baekhyun was asking about. Her blush, which had been fading, came back. Curious reaction, Baekhyun thought.  
  
“That’s...” she started. She appeared to be excited to tell him, so much that she had to pause to gather her bearings. Baekhyun urged her on with a patient quirk of his lips. “Well, his name is Chanyeol Park. He’s a famous photographer who management decided to bring in. They wanted to buy some of his photographs to put in a few suites.”  
  
“Famous photographer, huh?” Baekhyun murmured to himself.  
  
To the girl, he thanked her and excused himself, heading toward Chanyeol. He took a deep breath as he put one foot in front of the other, wondering to himself why he even felt nervous in the first place. The world seemed unsteady all of a sudden.  
  
Before Baekhyun could announce his presence, Chanyeol looked up from the man he’d been talking to. Baekhyun’s steps faltered at the sight of that same weird grin breaking out across Chanyeol’s face.  
  
So the smile hadn’t just been his imagination. For some reason, the thought made him happy.  
  
“Mr. Byun!” Chanyeol exclaimed to him, after bidding a quick goodbye to the people around him. He radiated happiness and Chanyeol’s expression was so contagious that, despite himself, Baekhyun found his lips twitching into a smile of its own.  
  
“This is our second time meeting, Mr. Park,” Baekhyun observed, raising a teasing eyebrow. “And in a different country, too.”  
  
“Ah,” Chanyeol said. His smile dimmed as panic slowly spread. Baekhyun watched curiously as Chanyeol flailed his arms. “I’m not following you or anything, I swear!” He perked up. “Also, call me Chanyeol!”  
  
“I never said you were following me,” Baekhyun said, amusement bubbling in his stomach. He was the first one to hold out his hand this time. “Call me Baekhyun.”  
  
And as those warm hands took his once more, Baekhyun’s smile widened. Seemed like he found something interesting after all.  
  
  
  
  
  
Spending time with Chanyeol turned out to be fun. He ended up being different from what Baekhyun had assumed, and yet...  _exactly_  what he had expected, at the same time.  
  
Baekhyun didn’t even know what he had expected in the first place, but when he found himself collapsed against Chanyeol and laughing like he hadn’t in  _years_ , Baekhyun found that he had long since gotten rid of any judgements he’d had of the tall man.  
  
Chanyeol wasn’t like any person he’d dealt with before. Baekhyun knew how to approach business men (a calm, cool smile and a humble bow) and he knew how to approach socialites (make sure to lower your head slightly - they like to think they’re always better than you and showing any signs of dominance could end up with a few problems) but with Chanyeol?  
  
Baekhyun figured the only way to approach Chanyeol was as himself.  
  
It was amazing, Baekhyun thought, how much it felt like they’d been friends forever instead of a day and a tenth. He felt like he didn’t ever have to hide himself from Chanyeol; he could just be himself, and he’d still be accepted. He’d never felt so at ease with someone besides Kyungsoo, and he wasn’t sure if the thought was worrying or not.  
  
A gush of warm air blew into his left ear. Startled, Baekhyun practically squawked and covered his ear from the menace, eyes wide.  
  
Chanyeol threw a fit, laughing so hard he ended up collapsing on the floor. Blushing now, Baekhyun glared at Chanyeol’s crumpled form, now set into a fetal position, as he rubbed his hand across his ear.  
  
“I hate you,” he muttered. No, he was  _not_  pouting.  
  
“You love me,” Chanyeol returned, wiping tears from his eyes as he grinned brightly up at Baekhyun. Baekhyun huffed, and only responded with a light kick to Chanyeol’s side.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **April  
England**  
  
For once, Baekhyun was traveling for personal pleasure, not because of some crummy business reason. There were no meetings this time - no ties or suits or gelled up hair or getting up at eight in the morning as he destroyed yet another alarm clock. Most importantly though, there were no people who gave him headaches on a daily basis. He could just sit back and relax, and let the features of England just sink into him.  
  
Inside the car, Baekhyun stretched out his legs before sitting back up. His butt was sore after the long plane ride, but he figured he should enjoy it while he could; he expected to do a lot of walking within the next few hours.  
  
Running his palms idly against the soft interior of the car, he leaned his head against the cool window, watching the scenes outside flash by with a sense of inner peace. He couldn’t remember when he’d felt so... free. It was nice to get out every once in awhile, he had to admit.  
  
He’d have to thank Chanyeol for this little trip once he saw the photographer.  
  
And speaking of which...  
  
He brought his phone out of his pocket, thumbing through his contacts leisurely before highlighting a name and hitting the call button. Chanyeol picked up on the first ring.  
  
“ _Hello? Baekhyun?_ ” Chanyeol asked, and something about the way Chanyeol said his name made Baekhyun feel warm inside. A funny feeling fluttered in his stomach at the sound of Chanyeol’s deep voice. “ _Are you here yet?_ ”  
  
“Mm,” he confirmed, pressing the phone against his ear firmly. “I just got out of the airport. Are you at the hotel yet?”  
  
“ _Yep!_ ” Chanyeol chirped. “ _I got the keys to our room already, so just come up when you get here. I’ll text you the room number._ ”  
  
“Okay,” Baekhyun agreed, staring out the window again. The conversation lulled, and Baekhyun listened to Chanyeol breathe across the line, aware of a sense of contentment filling him. He chewed on the inside of his cheek, wondering what they were going to do until curiosity got the better of him and made him blurt out, “Any idea of our agenda today, or are we just going to walk around?”  
  
“ _Well, I thought we could go to the aquarium, Big Ben, and eat dinner before going on the London Eye,_ ” Chanyeol told him. “ _I even got us a private capsule, since I know you hate crowds. Does that sound fine with you?_ ”  
  
The excitement in his voice was plain to hear. Baekhyun smiled unconsciously just listening to it. He’d learned early into their friendship that though Chanyeol was a generally happy person, he didn’t get excited as easily.  
  
He must’ve been looking forward to this trip, Baekhyun thought to himself.  
  
“That’s fine with me,” Baekhyun said. In all actuality, it was  _more_  than fine. He hadn’t toured around London in so long; if his memory served him correctly, he hadn’t gone to the aquarium since he was five, and he hadn’t been on the London Eye since he had been seven.  
  
That had been when his mother was still alive. Now, without his mother around anymore, there had been no reason to visit such places anymore.  
  
“ _Yes!_ ” Chanyeol crowed. Baekhyun imagined him pumping his fist in the air victoriously and snickered to himself. Chanyeol continued, grin apparent in his voice, “ _Awesome._ ”  
  
“I’ll see you in a few minutes,” Baekhyun said, grinning madly to himself. Chanyeol just made him so  _happy_ sometimes.  
  
Just a moment later after they hung up, his phone buzzed.  
  
 **From** : Legolas  
 _our room # is 743 on the 7th floor!  
_ _ヘ(^_^_ _ヘ)(_ _ノ^_^)_ _ノ  
make sure to bring the party supplies. i’m quite the party thrower ;)_  
  
  
  
  
  
Baekhyun checked the door number again before knocking. Seven hundred forty three. That seemed about right.  
  
He held in a wary grin - if Chanyeol sent him to the wrong suite on purpose, Baekhyun swore the taller would end up bald before the night was through.  
  
He knocked, lowering his hand when he heard a thump and a rush of colorful expletives. Then Chanyeol opened the door a second later, rubbing his head sheepishly.  
  
“Hey, Baek!” Chanyeol greeted, scooting out of the way to allow Baekhyun to enter into the room.  
  
“What happened to you?” Baekhyun asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
“Fell off the bed,” Chanyeol told him shyly, turning red. Baekhyun snorted, leaning up to flick Chanyeol’s ears before skittering out of range from Chanyeol’s long, branchy arms. Chanyeol pouted at him. Baekhyun took stock of the room once he made sure Chanyeol wouldn’t try and get revenge.  
  
It was a comfy room, with cherry wood walls and two plush-looking beds spiffed up with blankets and pillows. There was an HD TV in the lounge area, along with one leather couch and two uncomfortable looking chairs. The closet was spacious enough for the both of them, and the bathroom was a grand sight of white and beige marble.  
  
“Hm, not bad,” Baekhyun hummed. Chanyeol padded over to where he was, hugging Baekhyun from behind.  
  
Baekhyun tensed before relaxing; he was slowly getting used to how touchy Chanyeol was. The skyscraper claimed that Baekhyun was just the right height to be a good armrest or even a body pillow. Surprisingly, Baekhyun wasn’t as averse to the thought as he might have been with someone else.  
  
“You know you like it,” Chanyeol snorted, and his voice was so deep that Baekhyun could feel his chest vibrating against his back. The vibrations were pleasant enough, and he felt warm and protected in Chanyeol’s embrace. He leaned back into Chanyeol, letting the other support his weight.  
  
However, the feeling got too intimate for Baekhyun, and he pulled himself away from the embrace a moment later. Chanyeol let him go easily enough, and Baekhyun flopped onto the closest bed.  
  
“So are we leaving right away?” he asked Chanyeol, who made his way to his own bed. Baekhyun watched as Chanyeol bounced on it.  
  
“Maybe we should wait for your bags to come first? I mean, we don’t have to do everything today - we can hold off on the London Eye tomorrow, if we run out of time.”  
  
“Sure,” he agreed, rolling around on the fluffy bed. It felt good to be on such a soft bed, but Baekhyun knew later he’d end up kicking all the blankets and pillows off while asleep. He was, unfortunately, a restless sleeper.  
  
Done inspecting his bed, he turned his attention back onto Chanyeol. The man was decked out in a long-sleeved turtle neck and some skinny jeans that accentuated his long legs. Baekhyun hadn’t noticed it before, but the casual look helped bring out all of Chanyeol’s attractive features.  
  
Baekhyun laid down, listening to Chanyeol as the other hummed a song. He perked up.  
  
“Are you singing a Girl’s Generation song?” he asked, sitting up.  
  
“Yeah,” Chanyeol grinned. Baekhyun mentally added some points onto Chanyeol’s score.  
  
“Marry me,” Baekhyun said solemnly.  
  
“Well, if you insist,” Chanyeol said airily, winking.  
  
  
  
  
  
After Baekhyun got his suitcases from the bellhop, they decided to head out to grab a quick lunch before they walked around London.  
  
Baekhyun did a few silly poses for Chanyeol as they laughed through their sandwiches. Baekhyun was glad Kyungsoo wasn’t there; the corporate prince would’ve thrown a fit at how disgusting Chanyeol and Baekhyun were being.  
  
Halfway through lunch, Chanyeol had left his booth to squeeze in with Baekhyun, showing the other the pictures he’d taken so far. He smelled like aftershave and cologne, Baekhyun couldn’t help but notice, after being squished in with the other.  
  
Baekhyun had to give it to Chanyeol - the man had some serious talent with the camera. The angles and lighting seemed to work in the tall man’s favor. There were pictures of gorgeous women in lakes, in houses, in the streets, in Italy, in Russia, and pictures of a man (an oddly beautiful blond-headed man), candid and light and just all around happy.  
  
Then came the pictures Chanyeol had started to take in England.  
  
Normally, Baekhyun wanted to jump off a cliff after seeing some of his pictures, but even the horrendous, goofy ones that had been taken of him looked good. He raised his astounded eyes from the small screen to stare unblinkingly at Chanyeol.  
  
Seeing this, Chanyeol flushed happily and said, “I generally don’t edit my photos, so I have to take good ones the first time.” He beamed. Baekhyun had to resist the urge to pinch his cheeks.  
  
“They’re really good!” Baekhyun managed to get out, looking over some of the pictures again. “I can see why people pay you for your photos now.”  
  
“Were you doubting my skills?” Chanyeol asked in mock anger.  
  
“Yeah,” Baekhyun admitted, and regretted it soon after when Chanyeol decided to try and tickle him.  
  
Baekhyun paid no attention to the disgruntled looks aimed their way as he laughed loudly; he was simply in too good a mood to do otherwise.  
  
  
  
  
  
The aquarium had changed since the last time he had gone. Granted, Baekhyun’s memories of the place were fuzzy, but he remembered enough to notice that it was a much bigger place now.  
  
It was a lot more crowded than he remembered, too. Children were overfilling the place, and Baekhyun resorted to using Chanyeol as a human shield against them.  
  
Baekhyun watched as Chanyeol made a few faces at the fishes gathered near them and joined in on the fun. The fishes glanced at them, as if wondering why two weird humans had such weird faces, before they scattered away. Baekhyun and Chanyeol shared a grin.  
  
When they got to the shark tanks, Baekhyun watched with wide eyes as three scuba divers held a tea party under water. The sharks swam around them, scary and beautiful and strangely passive.  
  
He heard Chanyeol’s camera click, and he looked over to see Chanyeol already looking at the picture, smiling fondly down at his camera.  
  
Baekhyun frowned, debating on whether or not he should ask to see the camera, before shrugging. He’d eventually see the pictures, anyway.  
  
  
  
  
  
On the car ride to Big Ben, Baekhyun chattered on about how great the aquarium was. Chanyeol listened to him with a humoring grin, and the twinkle in his brown eyes assured Baekhyun that he wasn’t being  _too_ annoying.  
  
Absentmindedly, Baekhyun’s fingers played with Chanyeol’s.  
  
“Did you get any good shots?” Baekhyun asked.  
  
“I’ll have to actually take pictures when we get to Big Ben,” Chanyeol told him, seemingly amused by himself. “I couldn’t take much during the aquarium since it’s hard to get good shots surrounded by glass, so I’ll have to make up for it later.”  
  
“You’ll show me some later, right?” Baekhyun asked, grinning as he playfully made a grab at Chanyeol’s camera. His hand got batted away, and he settled back into his seat with a joking glower.  
  
“Well, maybe if a certain someone stops using the gimme-gimme hands every time I take a picture,” Chanyeol said, smirking.  
  
Baekhyun puffed his cheeks out in protest. Chanyeol raised his camera and took a picture of him.  
  
  
  
  
  
Big Ben was, in short, uneventful. You could only deal with so much clock watching before you got bored.  
  
Baekhyun ended up staring at Chanyeol more than Big Ben itself. He watched as Chanyeol’s face became serious, focused,  _intense_. It reminded him of when he’d met Chanyeol in France a few months ago. He shivered remembering that serious, focused, intense face staring at him.  
  
“Bong bong bong,” Baekhyun muttered, deepening his voice as he tried to imitate the giant clock. He laughed at himself soon after - wow, he’d reached a new level of boredom. Surprisingly, Chanyeol still wasn’t done though. Looking at Chanyeol’s excited eyes, it actually appeared like he was  _enjoying_  himself, just taking pictures.  
  
Must be a photographer thing, Baekhyun summed up.  
  
  
  
  
  
Dinner was wonderful. Baekhyun and Chanyeol had an eating contest to see who could finish their food the fastest, and halfway through the competition, they ended up calling war on each other using their feet.  
  
Baekhyun could feel the bruises forming on his shins, but he didn’t care - the dinner had been fun and that was all that mattered to him.  
  
Now on the London Eye, Baekhyun breathed out a sigh of awe, placing his hand against the cool glass. They weren’t too high up yet, but the view was still spectacular, all the same.  
  
What made this view any more gorgeous than the one in France, though? They were both equally stunning but...something was different.  
  
Baekhyun glanced up, catching Chanyeol’s reflection in the glass.  
  
Chanyeol took pictures silently, and every once in awhile Baekhyun would see him pause and just look down, submerged in his own thoughts. His chocolate hair was mussed from the wind earlier that day and, added with the beauty of London as his background, Chanyeol looked like a work of art all on his own.  
  
Soon, Baekhyun couldn’t tell what he liked staring at more: London, or Chanyeol himself.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **May  
America**  
  
Baekhyun walked slowly out of Mr. Byun’s office in a daze. He breathed in deeply, the shock of getting yelled at still running around inside his head. His father’s voice continued to echo in his head.  
  
Taking in another deep breath, Baekhyun willed himself to relax, allowing his tensed posture to hunch and slacken.  
  
He winced as his hands rolled back into their normal position; he hadn’t noticed that they had balled into fists during that whole ordeal. His palms throbbed painfully, little angry crescents imprinted into the flesh. When he finally looked up, a few heads turned away. He studied the people around the office; they studiously focused on something other than him.  
  
They’d heard everything, Baekhyun realized. He closed his eyes, making an effort to not do something stupid right then and there.  
  
Reality was finally starting to sink in. He hadn’t wanted to think that it had happened - in fact, he’d thought once during the rant that it had all been part of a bad dream. Unfortunately, looking at a few pitying faces, it seemed like that wasn’t the case at all.  
  
He pressed his lips together. The seeds of anger and disappointment took root and sprouted. Striding out of the room into the guest lobby, he pulled out his cellphone. He punched in a speed dial and waited patiently for his best friend to pick up.  
  
It continued to ring to the point that Baekhyun thought he wouldn’t pick up before the call disconnected.  
  
However, the connection clicked into place and Kyungsoo’s groggy, irritated voice cracked out a, “ _What? Baekhyun? Do you have any_ idea _what time it is right now?_ ”  
  
Baekhyun belatedly realized that it was around 3am where Kyungsoo was. He’d forgotten that Kyungsoo was in Italy. He felt a little bad, but not bad enough to hang up.  
  
“Kyungsoo,” he said.  
  
There was a pause, some sheets rustling. It sounded like Kyungsoo was sitting up.  
  
“ _Baekhyun?_ ” Kyungsoo asked, worry coloring his voice. “ _What’s wrong?_ ”  
  
“Is there any way you can fly me over to America?” Baekhyun didn’t bother answering Kyungsoo’s question.  
  
His priority was to get out of the country as fast as he could. He could’ve used his family’s private set of planes, but he figured that wouldn’t make his father any happier. Besides, Kyungsoo was the only person he was comfortable asking this favor of.  
  
“...” Kyungsoo went quiet - so quiet, in fact, that Baekhyun almost thought he’d hung up. Finally he answered, “ _Okay, let me get two more hours of sleep, and I’ll pick you up in four hours._ ”  
  
“Alright,” Baekhyun whispered, practically clutching at the phone. He felt wretched and pathetic. “Thanks, ‘Soo.”  
  
“ _Yeah, yeah,_ ” Kyungsoo grumbled good-naturedly. He turned serious again. “ _You better explain everything to me later._ ”  
  
“I will.”  
  
“ _Good. I’ll see you in four hours._ ”  
  
Kyungsoo hung up. Baekhyun stared out the front windows as the dial tone beeped in his ears. And finally, taking a shuddering breath, he lowered it and ended the call.  
  
  
  
  
  
Baekhyun made sure to take care of everything that had been scheduled for the next three days. He asked his secretary to cancel appointments, and made sure to personally call people to apologize and reschedule. Finally, when he put his phone down, he grabbed a suitcase and opened it.  
  
He packed lightly - he wasn’t going to stay long and it wasn’t like he was doing anything special in America.  
  
He just really needed to get away.  
  
  
  
  
  
Tucked away safely onto the plane, Baekhyun finally allowed himself to relax. His body sank into the chair as he sagged; it felt like he was able to rest his burdens, even for just a little while.  
  
As he closed his eyes, he was aware of Kyungsoo’s stare digging into the side of his head. He ignored it though; Kyungsoo’s explanation could wait until they were actually up in the air. A little, irrational part of him feared that something would end up going wrong that would prevent them from flying away.  
  
Baekhyun sighed, opening his eyes to gaze around. Kyungsoo’s personal plane was a little bigger than his own; the seats were more prim and business-like compared to Baekhyun’s. If he wasn’t mistaken, Kyungsoo used his plane a lot for business meetings despite it being a personal space (his friend was just so much of a workaholic that Baekhyun had to roll his eyes every time he thought about it), so it made sense.  
  
He turned around, meeting Kyungsoo’s gaze squarely.  
  
He cocked his eyes, widening his eyes slightly. Kyungsoo watched him with suspicion; he’d seen that expression cross Baekhyun’s face many times.  
  
“So...” Baekhyun trailed off, smiling. “Where’d you hide the good alcohol?”  
  
“...are you seriously asking that right now?” Kyungsoo wondered, deadpan.  
  
“Well, yeah.”  
  
Kyungsoo released a large sigh, looking so much more tired than he had a second ago. Baekhyun watched his face transform with guilt, realizing immediately that he was the reason to cause the expression. He always seemed to trouble Kyungsoo, adding his own problems on top of the large pile the other was sure to have.  
  
However, Kyungsoo never complained about it - not for real, anyway. Kyungsoo allowed Baekhyun to just be himself, the him that came with more baggage than perks. It was amazing that Kyungsoo hadn’t ditched him yet.  
  
As he silently watched Kyungsoo get up and disappear into a private room, Baekhyun thanked whatever Supreme Ruler watching over him for his best friend.  
  
Without Kyungsoo, Baekhyun wasn’t sure where he’d be emotionally. He’d gotten over some of his darkest times with Kyungsoo by his side. Taking a trip down memory lane, Baekhyun wondered how it would’ve turned out without Kyungsoo.  
  
Something inside him shuddered at the thought.  
  
A glass appeared in front of his face, jerking Baekhyun out of his thoughts. He blinked, eyes crossing slightly before he focused on Kyungsoo, who stood silently holding the glass. Smiling, Baekhyun thanked Kyungsoo quietly.  
  
“No problem,” Kyungsoo said easily, sliding back into the seat with his own drink.  
  
“Mr. Do, we will be taking off in a few minutes,” the speakers droned.  
  
“Alright,” Kyungsoo unnecessarily replied back to the ceiling. Baekhyun snickered, taking a small sip of his drink as he watched his best friend. Kyungsoo scowled at him, sniffing in offense. They shared a smile a second later.  
  
The floor rumbled with them as the plane began to move. Kyungsoo paid it no attention, focusing it all onto Baekhyun. Finally, when he understood that Baekhyun wouldn’t tell him anything willingly, he sighed.  
  
“So?” Kyungsoo asked at last, taking a swing of his own drink. “Want to tell me now what happened? You owe me it after waking me up at that ungodly time.”  
  
Baekhyun sighed, dropping his gaze to the drink in his hand. He jiggled it around, watching the amber liquid sway lightly with his actions. Going through the past few hours now in his calm state made it everything seem like some kind of bad joke. He hoped Kyungsoo wouldn’t be too angry with him.  
  
“Well,” he spoke, “I suppose I just wanted to get away from Mr. Byun.” He spat the name out with distaste. Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow.  
  
“So you two had another argument?” It was no secret that Mr. Byun and his son agreed to never agree on anything; they’d stopped getting along long before Baekhyun’s mother had died. Baekhyun shook his head at that though, smiling wryly. Something dark flashed over his face, clouding his normally clear eyes.  
  
“It was more like a verbal massacre, with him doing the killing,” Baekhyun said. Kyungsoo winced in sympathy, silent.  
  
“So where did you want to go to in America, anyway?” Kyungsoo asked abruptly, changing the subject. He seemed curious.  
  
Baekhyun’s lips twitched into a smirk.  
  
  
  
  
  
Baekhyun sucked at gambling. He always had sucked, and he always would. It wasn’t that he couldn’t lie - on the contrary, he suspected that he gambled just to lie in the first place. He had a great poker face too, he had to admit. Sometimes even the people who knew him the best (i.e. Kyungsoo) couldn’t tell the difference from when he was faking something and when he wasn’t. No, it was just the fact that he had awful luck.  
  
No matter what thing he attempted to do, he almost always lost. It was exasperating, honestly.  
  
Then again, his policy to never cheat while gambling probably had a hand in that, as well. It was a silly notion - romantic, even - but he’d made a promise to himself early in his life and it was the only promise he could possibly keep.  
  
That little promise to himself seemed silly in the face of his current situation, though. He gulped down more of his alcohol, raising bloodshot eyes from the cards in his hands. He looked at them for a second before blinking blearily.  
  
Well, he was screwed.  
  
Taking a pause from the game, he mentally counted up all the money he’d lost that night, deducting it quietly from one of his personal bank accounts. Maybe it was just his poor arithmetic right now but... was it actually going into the negatives?  
  
He resisted the urge to bang his head on the table.  
  
  
  
  
  
“So, Mr. Byun,” the man across the round table said pleasantly, straightening out the cuffs of his ridiculous purple suit. Baekhyun held back a sigh, willing the soon-to-be-headache away as he stared vacantly at the man. Was he supposed to be intimidated? Because he honestly wasn’t. The man continued, “I hear your bank account ran out of money.”  
  
The casino bloomed with vibrant life. Sparkling dresses, diamonds and pearls, dashing suits and carefully beautified hair were everywhere. Only a few like Baekhyun were wearing casual clothes. A few people paused once in awhile to glance at the table he currently sat at, namely at the little man in purple currently glaring at him, and the big, burly bouncers standing behind him.  
  
Baekhyun stared at the little man. Out of all the people, this dude had to be the owner of the casino? He was more of a wannabe gangster than anything else.  
  
To Baekhyun, it was funny and unimpressive at the same time.  
  
“Yep,” he replied simply. No use in lying now. He watched as the man’s face turned angry, but he was just a little more than inebriated to care at the moment. Baekhyun doubted he’d be worried even if he  _was_  running at full mental capacity.  
  
“How are you going to pay us then, huh?” the man asked - demanded, really - when Baekhyun left it at his one-worded answer. Baekhyun resisted the urge to roll his eyes - no need to get the angry man more angry.  
  
“Dunno,” he said in reply, shrugging. Good thing Kyungsoo wasn’t here, his sluggish mind thought. Otherwise his best friend would’ve been having a heart attack by now.  
  
The man smiled, a grim baring of teeth that seemed more snarl than smile. He cheerfully slammed his hand against the table and repeated, “I  _said_ , How. Are you going. To  _pay_. Us.”  
  
Baekhyun watched the man drolly, about to open his mouth to shoot off another suicidal comment, but something strange happened. The faint scent of a familiar cologne was the only warning Baekhyun got.  
  
“Ah,” a deep voice said, clearly amused. Baekhyun froze, shocked. “Looks like Baekhyun got himself into trouble.”  
  
The little gangster owner man glanced up from Baekhyun to look at the person standing somewhere behind Baekhyun, no longer smiling.  
  
“Are you his friend?” the owner asked.  
  
“I’d like to think so,” Chanyeol said cheerfully, pulling a chair down to sit next to Baekhyun. He wore a simple tux, looking classy and elegant and just un-Chanyeol-like in general. Baekhyun glanced at him with wide eyes, wondering if he was dreaming. Why the hell was Chanyeol at the casino?  
  
He looks good dressed in formals, too, Baekhyun mused, his chain of thoughts derailing suddenly.  
  
“So, how much does Baekhyun owe?” Chanyeol asked, a friendly smile still on his handsome face. Baekhyun almost choked on air, eyes practically popping out of his eye sockets. Say what?  
  
The little gangster man raised an eyebrow, seemingly incredulous, and said, “Five grand.” Chanyeol whistled, impressed.  
  
“Damn, Baekhyun, you sure know how to spend your money,” he said conversationally, plucking his wallet out from one of the pockets in his tux.  
  
He took out what looked to be a debit card and handed it over to the owner. Baekhyun watched the proceedings with slack lips. The owner wasn’t faring any better.  
  
The little man snapped his mouth closed with a  _click_  before handing the card to one of his goons, giving the steroid man a signal. Steroid Man promptly disappeared with the card.  
  
Finally coming out of his daze, Baekhyun glared at Chanyeol. “Are you an idiot?” he slurred out angrily.  
  
“What?” Chanyeol asked, confused.  
  
“What did you-- Why-- How--?” Baekhyun stuttered, his sluggish mind not moving fast enough for him to be coherent.  
  
“You got rather lucky,” the little man up front said, interrupting them. Steroid Man was already back with Chanyeol’s card. The wannabe gangster owner gave Chanyeol his debit card back with a sneer on his face. Baekhyun promptly wanted to throw something at him, preferably his fist. “Your friend was here to save you.”  
  
The little man sashayed away with his little entourage, even putting a bit of hip into his gait as he walked away. Baekhyun curled his lip at the man’s disappearing form before turning to Chanyeol.  
  
“Well, I guess that’s done with,” Chanyeol said, putting the card back into his wallet neatly.  
  
“I can’t believe you just did that,” Baekhyun said in one moment of clarity. Chanyeol grinned his signature grin at Baekhyun.  
  
“Shouldn’t you be bowing at my feet or something for saving you?” Chanyeol asked, leaning against the table in a way he could face Baekhyun. Baekhyun almost got distracted by how attractive Chanyeol looked just then. Almost.  
  
Man, this was why he didn’t like getting drunk.  
  
“I don’t think so,” Baekhyun said dryly. He frowned, blinking up at Chanyeol and leaning closer. He felt a little guilty. He didn’t notice Chanyeol stilling. “I’ll pay you back though.”  
  
Chanyeol’s eyes dropped for a second before returning to look into Baekhyun’s eyes. Baekhyun felt himself flush at the way Chanyeol stared at him with that intense, focused gaze, and he wondered why Chanyeol was looking at him like words were written on his face and needed to be read.  
  
“Can...” Chanyeol hesitated, brow wrinkling in indecision before his face smoothed out. A glint sparked in Chanyeol’s eyes as his voice deepened. “Can I collect the payment now?”  
  
Baekhyun frowned in confusion. “Now?” he repeated, lips puckering out in befuddlement. “But I don’t have any money right now.”  
  
“It’s not money I want,” Chanyeol whispered, and before Baekhyun could ask what he meant by that, chapped lips pressed against his.  
  
Baekhyun blinked, staring at the way Chanyeol’s spiky lashes rested on his cheekbones, before his own eyes slid closed. He melted, and he wasn’t sure if it was the alcohol or the way Chanyeol kissed him that made his mind hazy.  
  
Chanyeol exhaled softly against his lips, and Baekhyun inhaled Chanyeol’s breath, something inside of him deliriously happy.  
  
All too soon, Chanyeol pulled away, eyes dark and obscure. He ran a finger across Baekhyun’s bottom lip absently before standing up. Room temperature rushed between them, but it felt cold to Baekhyun’s flushed cheeks. Chanyeol smiled.  
  
“Consider our debt repaid!” he said cheerfully, and turned. He disappeared into the crowd.  
  
Baekhyun stared after Chanyeol, not noticing all the people staring at him. Slowly, he got up from his seat and wobbled away.  
  
One hour later, safe in bed, Baekhyun closed his eyes and dreamt of the ghostly caress of lips pressed gently against his own.  
  
And when he woke up the next morning, he deluded himself to thinking it was just that - a  _dream_. He banished the dream from his thoughts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 **June  
Spain**  
  
Business in Spain didn’t take long.  
  
In fact, it took less time than Baekhyun had anticipated and he ended up wasting time as he enjoyed himself on the beach of the resort. He basked in the sunlight after being stuck inside for so long. He took a short walk in the wet sands, holding his shoes and socks in one hand as he stared out to where the sun touched the water. At one point, he even ducked his head into the cool waters, uncaring how the water dripped onto his white shirt.  
  
What he did  _not_  do, however, was think of that strange dream filled with Chanyeol and heat and kisses and what it did to him -  
  
He stopped the thought right there.  
  
Instead, he thought of safer things.  
  
For once, he hadn’t run into Chanyeol. They’d been meeting in new countries one time after the next that it felt weirdly lonely not seeing the big goof ball. Sure, they’d talked on the phone, and sometimes they texted, but it just wasn’t the same. Nothing could beat the ability to see Chanyeol in real life - see how his face came to life, how he gestured wildly with just about every topic, or how he smiled gently at Baekhyun. A phone could only be so much of a substitute for a person, after all.  
  
As day slowly bled into night, Baekhyun planted himself on one part of the beach, watching as the sun went down.  
  
He knew he had to leave Spain - should have left a long time ago, actually - but some part of him was unwilling to move. Maybe if he stayed long enough...  
  
The sky flared, brilliant colors of yellows and oranges and reds painting the atmosphere from the heavens to the seas. The sight was beautiful but something was still missing.  
  
Chanyeol would’ve liked to see this, Baekhyun thought to himself. A sense of dissatisfaction welled up in him a second later.  
  
He scowled to himself - why couldn’t he stop thinking about Chanyeol? - and marched off the beach. He had a plane to board soon.  
  
When he boarded his plane two hours later, Baekhyun allowed himself to glance out the window, watching silently as the features of Spain slowly rolled away. Soon, he couldn’t see anything but rolling hills and city dots.  
  
He faced forward and closed his eyes.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **July  
Japan**  
  
Baekhyun wandered around the Red Light District, paying no attention to the sights, smells, and sounds which ran chaotic through the streets. He didn’t have the faintest idea of why he was there in the first place, other than the one small fact that he just needed to get smashed.  
  
Awful days seemed to be his only constant companion lately and, unfortunately, it was the one companion that Baekhyun would much rather have done without.  
  
The district was lit up with neon signs and flashy shops. Mysterious alleys trailed away from the main street and every once in awhile, Baekhyun could see a man or two walking down them.  
  
Different characters of people stained the streets; a woman in a beautiful pink dress was carrying two giant bags of ice down the street, and a man decked out in a striped suit held an umbrella over his head (what for, Baekhyun didn’t know - there wasn’t even a single cloud in the night sky as far as he could see) as he strolled through. Baekhyun even almost ran into another woman, this one wearing a pink and red kimono.  
  
A few girls called out to the men passing by (which unfortunately included him), but Baekhyun avoided them the best he could, instead diving straight into the first seemingly decent bar.  
  
His phone vibrated worriedly in his pocket, but Baekhyun ignored it. The caller was probably just Kyungsoo, anyway.  
  
“Anything strong,” he told the bartender in Japanese, grabbing a seat at a far end. He ran a weary hand down his face, rolling his shoulders in an attempt to relax himself. It didn’t work.  
  
“You look like you’ve had a rough day,” the bartender said, simultaneously talking and making the drink at the same time. It would’ve been more amazing to Baekhyun had he not been in such a foul mood in the first place.  
  
“It’s been one hell of a day,” Baekhyun agreed dryly, sighing. The bartender gave him a sympathetic smile, setting Baekhyun’s drink in front of him before going off to serve someone else. Baekhyun eyed the concoction, taking in the yellow color with suspicious eyes.  
  
He shrugged soon after. He didn’t care about the color - all he cared about was how powerful it was.  
  
He quickly downed it, wincing at how it burned down his throat. It spread like wildfire all the way down to his belly, branching outwards. Well, it wasn’t bad, definitely. Already he could feel the effects start to take hold on his motor skills.  
  
He gazed at the empty glass pensively, then raised his hand for another.  
  
An hour later, Baekhyun opened his eyes, catching a glimpse of a familiar face - Chanyeol? What was Chanyeol doing here? - before he was lifted from his comfortable position on the table.  
  
He groaned, head flopping sideways before finding purchase on Chanyeol’s shoulder. Hmm, he smelled nice.  
  
Chanyeol said something in Japanese to the bartender - Baekhyun couldn’t understand anything anymore, much less Japanese - before pulling Baekhyun up from his seat. It was a good thing Baekhyun had already been leaning on Chanyeol, because Chanyeol was able to catch him before his knees buckled from under him.  
  
“Wow, you’re positively drunk,” Chanyeol told him, snorting in amusement.  
  
Baekhyun blearily opened his eyes to glare at Chanyeol’s neck. He almost felt bad a second later; Chanyeol’s neck was quite good-looking, after all. It didn’t deserve his wrath.  
  
“I-I’mmm noot d-drunk.”  
  
“Right, and my name isn’t Chanyeol,” Chanyeol said, snorting. For whatever reason, Baekhyun giggled, hiccuping.  
  
“Chan-” he tried. “Chan....yer.” Baekhyun made a funny sounding grugle in the back of his throat. “Chanyer.” His knees buckled under him once more, and the world tipped over before Chanyeol righted it, grunting in effort.  
  
Where would he be without Chanyeol? Baekhyun asked himself sluggishly. Paranoia seized him at the thought. He clung onto Chanyeol.  
  
“Don’t leave me,” he whispered into Chanyeol’s shirt pathetically.  
  
“Does it look like I’ll be leaving you any time soon?” Chanyeol asked him, amused. His answer did not stop Baekhyun from worrying though.  
  
“Y-You can’t leave me,” he said, hiccuping as he pulled back to gaze at Chanyeol with wide eyes. “Ever. Promise me.” The world stopped spinning on its axis for a second, allowing Baekhyun to see the blush spreading across Chanyeol’s cheeks. His cheeks looked warm, Baekhyun thought, and he pulled himself up to press his own cheek against Chanyeol’s.  
  
He closed his eyes happily, sleepily. Chanyeol’s cheek was wonderfully warm and it was just what Baekhyun needed to lull himself into a stupor.  
  
“Okay...” Chanyeol breathed out, his breath fanning against the small of Baekhyun’s neck, as he wrapped his arms around Baekhyun. “I won’t leave if you don’t want me to leave.”  
  
Baekhyun smiled, toasty and blissful and safe in Chanyeol’s arms.  
  
 _All_  of Chanyeol was warm, he thought, and slid into a black, comforting sleep.  
  
  
  
  
  
When he woke up, Chanyeol had just finished pulling the covers over his practically nude form.  
  
Cold. Baekhyun shivered. He blinked his eyes open slowly, watching Chanyeol’s face as it hovered over his worriedly. He could barely see Chanyeol, Baekhyun mused drowsily. The thought upset him more than it should have.  
  
Baekhyun shook one of his arms out from under the covers, grabbing at Chanyeol and pulling him down. Baekhyun grinned at the surprised expression marring the other’s face that he could make out even in the darkness, lacing his fingers with Chanyeol’s idly.  
  
A little warmer now.  
  
“‘m really cold,” Baekhyun told him, speech still slurred. Something that looked suspiciously like disappointment flashed in Chanyeol’s eyes before he masked it, instead grinning apologetically.  
  
“Sorry, I took off most of your clothes since they stunk,” Chanyeol said, laughing softly. “I didn’t want my bed to smell like alcohol.” His breath smelled like mint, Baekhyun noted, cuddling closer.  
  
He could feel Chanyeol’s warmth a little bit through the blankets, but it wasn’t enough to satisfy him. He huffed, struggling to pull Chanyeol into the blanket. Chanyeol snorted, laughing.  
  
“What are you doing?” Chanyeol asked, amused. He quickly got under the covers, nonetheless.  
  
“‘m cold,” Baekhyun mumbled again, snuggling up close to Chanyeol. His lips traced Chanyeol’s collarbone obliviously, and his heart pounded in his chest. He paid no attention to it. He continued, “And yer warm.”  
  
Still, it wasn’t warm enough. Baekhyun frowned, not noticing Chanyeol stiffening in his embrace. Baekhyun slid his freezing hands under Chanyeol’s t-shirt by accident, and that was just about the best accident he could have ever made.  
  
He brightened when his hands met warmth.  
  
Now determined, Baekhyun tugged at Chanyeol’s shirt, pouting when Chanyeol refused to give him a hand.  
  
“Chanyerr,” he whined. “Cold. Take off yer clotheees.”  
  
Still, Chanyeol didn’t move. Baekhyun cocked his head in confusion. Was Chanyeol even breathing?  
  
Curious, slightly panicked, Baekhyun leaned close to Chanyeol, scrutinizing Chanyeol’s face. The taller man had his eyes screwed shut, mouth pressed into a firm, straight line. Baffled, Baekhyun waved a hand in front of Chanyeol’s face. Chanyeol gave no reaction.  
  
Baekhyun’s eyes dropped to Chanyeol’s lips. His lids lowered, and he traced the tensed opening absently. It felt softer than the lips in his dream, he thought. What would it feel like in real life to kiss Chanyeol?  
  
So he pressed his lips to Chanyeol’s, eyes sliding closed.  
  
At first, Baekhyun couldn’t feel anything except a tingling sensation. Chanyeol still didn’t acknowledge him even then, so Baekhyun leaned down again, this time tracing the seams of Chanyeol’s lips with the tip of his tongue.  
  
Something warmed inside of Baekhyun, intoxicating and embarrassing all at once.  
  
Chanyeol gasped, eyes and mouth shooting wide just as Baekhyun sealed their mouths together again. Baekhyun watched with a certain satisfaction as Chanyeol slowly relaxed, lids closing once more. Baekhyun purred when Chanyeol wrapped arms around him, deepening the kiss.  
  
And Baekhyun craved more. It was an itch underneath his skin, turning him hot and bothered and breathless. On impulse, Baekhyun caught Chanyeol’s bottom lip between his teeth, nipping at it gently. He received a growl in return. Baekhyun shivered at the sound, sinking more and more into Chanyeol.  
  
“Fuck,” Chanyeol finally breathed when they parted. At one point, they’d rolled over in the bed, so now Baekhyun gazed up at Chanyeol as the other man’s breath fanned across his cheekbones.  
  
“More,” Baekhyun said breathily. His chest heaved in an effort to pull in air.  
  
“You don’t know what you’re getting into,” Chanyeol said, and a silent war raged within him. Baekhyun could see it in his eyes.  
  
“I do,” Baekhyun slurred. Chanyeol’s face twisted,  _contorted_  for a second, anguished and vulnerable. He looked about ready to cry and it just about broke Baekhyun’s heart watching him.  
  
Baekhyun wanted to rid Chanyeol of that expression, wanted for Chanyeol to look at him with those gentle, beautiful eyes that seemed to know no darkness in the world. So Baekhyun did the only thing he could. He opened himself up - mind, heart, body, and soul.  
  
He ran the palm of his hand against Chanyeol’s cheek lovingly, feeling the beginnings of a stubble underneath his soft palm, and he whispered, “Please.”  
  
A moment later, Chanyeol gave in.  
  
  
  
  
  
Baekhyun woke to a pounding headache. He rolled over in bed with a grimace, unfortunately disentangling himself from the warmth surrounding him. A throbbing on his lower back made him mumble a curse, and he ended up settling back down in his original position.  
  
“Shit,” he said. Why did he feel so crappy?  
  
“Mm, Baek,” someone breathed into his hair, and the person moved around before settling down again. Warm, naked arms wrapped around his own bare frame. Baekhyun froze, his eyes shooting open in horror as his heart thundered in his ears. Who the hell was in bed with him? Holding his breath, Baekhyun slowly turned his head to the right and felt his heart drop into his stomach.  
  
“C-Chanyeol?” he asked himself, half confused and half shocked. No way. Had he...slept with Chanyeol last night?  
  
He didn’t want to believe it, but the soreness of his backside told another tale.  
  
He turned carefully back to face the ceiling, arms and legs feeling ten times more stiff compared to just two minutes ago. He tried to remember the things that had happened yesterday, but after he had downed his fourth drink, his memory went blurry. Flashes of Chanyeol’s face came to his mind when he thought hard enough. One Chanyeol looked concerned. The other looked pained. And the last one looked...  
  
 _Chanyeol breathed above him, face screwed up with pleasure as he thrusted into Baekhyun’s willing body. Passion blazed between them. Baekhyun raked nails down Chanyeol’s back, biting into the other’s shoulder to muffle his moan. The need between them rose to a new height, steamy and hot and uncontrollable. Sometimes it felt like Baekhyun couldn’t even breathe in correctly - but that might have just been because he kept forgetting he had lungs in the first place.  
  
Chanyeol’s eyes opened, so dark and hungry and lustful, as he gave another powerful thrust and gripped Baekhyun’s desire in his hand, pushing Baekhyun over the edge. Baekhyun’s body went rigid and -_  
  
Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuckfuckfuck. Baekhyun trembled, unable to believe those...those  _hallucinations_  were real. He couldn’t have had sex with a guy, much less Chanyeol!  
  
Chanyeol was his second best friend, someone Baekhyun hung out with for fun, not because he was hot or attractive or funny or had an amazi -  
  
No, this couldn’t be happening. Baekhyun took in a shuddering breath, his body screaming at him for air as he came to a decision.  
  
“Sorry, Chanyeol,” he mumbled, feeling slightly guilty.  
  
He delicately edged from under Chanyeol’s arms, pausing only when Chanyeol frowned in his sleep and continuing on when Chanyeol’s face smoothed out. Then he wobbled around, trying to find his clothing. He abandoned his underwear and quietly began putting on his clothes. He winced when he put on his jeans; bending down hurt, and the jeans rubbing against his sensitive parts hurt too, but he’d rather hurt and get out of the place faster than try and find his underwear.  
  
He was still shrugging his shirt on as he left the building.  
  
In his haste, he didn’t see the water and pain medicate laid out for him on the coffee table.  
  
The door slammed shut.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **August  
Spain**  
  
There was nothing different about rich-people parties in Spain. The place was overly, exaggeratingly decorated (like parties always were), and was attended by snobs galore (but what was new with  _that_?).  
  
Baekhyun rather liked avoiding most rich-people parties - he already hated people as it was and socializing was just a big no-no - but Mr. Byun had told him to get the attention of one of the old money families in Spain to sponsor a project for their resort this coming winter. All in all, it was just a giant pain in the behind.  
  
Thankfully, he had Kyungsoo to suffer along with him.  
  
“Baekhyun, your tie is crooked,” Kyungsoo said, critically eyeing Baekhyun’s reflection in the mirror. Around them, other men fixed up their own suits. Fucking divas, Baekhyun thought acidly. Just what did they think themselves as? Women? No, Baekhyun was sure women didn’t even primp themselves in the mirror like these men did... at least, not the women Baekhyun knew.  
  
“If you don’t fix your tie in five seconds, I’ll go over there and fix it for you,” Kyungsoo warned, irritated at being ignored. Baekhyun huffed.  
  
“Damn it, ‘Soo,” he muttered as he fixed his tie obediently. “Take a chill pill, will ya?” Kyungsoo glared at him.  
  
“Do I have to remind you that the only reason I’m here is because you  _dragged_  me here?” Kyungsoo asked bitingly, patience dissolving quickly. Baekhyun had been in a horrible mood all day - no, all  _month_ , and all Baekhyun’s grouchiness was slowly getting to his normally fair-tempered best friend.  
  
Baekhyun winced, instantly feeling remorseful.  
  
“Sorry, Kyungsoo. I didn’t mean that. You know I appreciate you coming with me, right?” Kyungsoo was the last person who deserved his anger. His best friend had done so much for him the past month that even Baekhyun just snapping at Kyungsoo left Baekhyun feeling like the biggest asshole on the planet.  
  
Kyungsoo sighed, smiling at Baekhyun through the mirror; his eyes were still troubled though.  
  
“I know you appreciate me coming,” Kyungsoo said. “But I wish you would just tell me what’s eating at you. You changed after you visited Japan, and I know it wasn’t because of the crappy business merge you had to deal with over there.”  
  
Baekhyun bit his lip.  
  
It wasn’t that he didn’t want to tell Kyungsoo. In fact, he wanted -  _needed_  - to spill out everything that had happened between him and Chanyeol to his best friend.  
  
…But telling Kyungsoo what happened meant... actually acknowledging that something  _had happened_  that night. Baekhyun just wasn’t ready for that yet.  
  
He still needed time to process what had happened - needed time to accept the situation for what it really was.  
  
“I promise I’ll tell you when I’m ready,” Baekhyun said, glancing up at Kyungsoo pleadingly. “Just bear with me until I can say it out loud,  _please_.”  
  
If he lost Kyungsoo now, there’d be no telling where he would end up.  
  
Kyungsoo pressed his lips together and shut his eyes, visibly pulling himself together. Baekhyun’s answer was obviously an answer he hadn’t wanted to hear, but there was acceptance in his eyes when he finally looked at Baekhyun again. Baekhyun almost deflated with relief.  
  
“Okay,” Kyungsoo said simply. He wagged a finger in front of Baekhyun. “But no more snapping at me.” Baekhyun nodded submissively. Kyungsoo smiled. “Also, your tie is still crooked.”  
  
  
  
  
  
When Baekhyun saw Chanyeol across the room, strength left him so fast he almost collapsed right there.  
  
He panicked - he couldn’t face Chanyeol yet. He hadn’t avoided Chanyeol’s calls, or his texts, or even his random visits in the past month all for it to go to waste here!  
  
Chanyeol looked good, hair gelled up to perfection and suit tailored for his tall frame. However, there were dark bags underneath his eyes, and he appeared to be a bit thinner than Baekhyun had remembered. Baekhyun’s fingers twitched, and he wanted nothing more than to run them over the circles underneath Chanyeol’s eyes, hoping they’d go away.  
  
A beautiful man stood next to Chanyeol. He had soft strands of sunlight as hair, and the most radiant smile Baekhyun had ever seen on a person. And somehow...he looked familiar. Baekhyun studied the man.  
  
He truly was a sight to see, but when the man glanced up to Chanyeol with love obvious in his eyes, Baekhyun’s appreciation of him drained until nothing but a shimmering jealousy was left. He wanted to march over to Chanyeol’s side and pull him away, and maybe get in a well-aimed glare or two at the beautiful man for even thinking he had a shot with Chanyeol.  
  
But he didn’t do either one of those things. Instead, like the coward he was, he grasped onto Kyungsoo and tried his best to hide from Chanyeol’s line of view. He prayed to get through the party alive, and unseen.  
  
  
  
  
  
God wasn’t listening to his prayers though. Just when Baekhyun had finished his talk up with the man hosting the party - the one he had come to the party for, in the first place - Chanyeol had spotted him and cornered him.  
  
In between a wall and Chanyeol, there was no place for Baekhyun to hide.  
  
His running had finally come to a halt.  
  
He wanted to apologize - to tell Chanyeol how sorry he was for leaving that night without any explanation, to tell Chanyeol how horrid he felt when he ignored all of Chanyeol’s attempts at contact with him. However, looking into those eyes - those eyes that kept haunting him in his sleep and even when he was wide awake - a shiver of fear shot up his spine and rendered him unable to even open his mouth.  
  
“Baekhyun?” Chanyeol asked, and something about him seemed so fragile and desperate in the moment that it almost  _hurt_  Baekhyun to look at him. Baekhyun’s fists clenched. Chanyeol searched his face as if looking for some type of sign.  
  
“Chanyeol.” Baekhyun felt numb, and yet his mouth moved. His voice sounded surprisingly cool, even to him. He swallowed, looking away from Chanyeol. “Long time, no see.”  
  
“Are you...” Chanyeol hesitated. “Okay?”  
  
“Yeah, I’m great,” Baekhyun said, forcing a smile as he crossed his arms. “You?”  
  
“I’m...”  
  
“Look,” Baekhyun interrupted, biting his lip. Never had he felt so foolish or awkward in his life. He cleared his throat. “I have to go. Kyungsoo and I have somewhere to be right now. Sorry. Maybe I’ll see you around sometime.”  
  
As he walked away, Baekhyun tried to not to think about how he had left Chanyeol looking small and dejected.  
  
And thus, his running resumed.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **September  
America **  
  
Baekhyun got a surprising visit during his boring stay in America. His secretary, Jongdae, knocked on his office door politely and called through the door,  
  
“Sir, a man is here to see you without an appointment. Do you want to talk to him?” Baekhyun looked up from the stack of papers he’d been reading, eyebrows raising in confusion, before looking at the clock.  
  
He shrugged to himself - it was only nine in the morning, why not. He’d like to have something new happen right now, anyways.  
  
However, he rethought his choice when he saw the man waiting to talk to him. His eyes widened. It was Chanyeol’s companion during the party in Spain! What in the world was  _he_  doing here?  
  
Baekhyun struggled to mask his surprise under a facade of cool pleasantness. Jongdae quietly closed the door, and left the two men in the room silent. Blondie looked at Baekhyun in a way that made him want to angrily ruffle his feathers. He held it in, however, studying Blondie back.  
  
“My name is Luhan,” the man said without warning. “I’m Chanyeol’s best friend, assistant, and sometimes model.” Baekhyun pressed his lips together, narrowing his eyes at the beautiful man. He remembered with jealousy how good Chanyeol and Luhan had looked together. He squashed it down ruthlessly.  
  
“And so?” Baekhyun asked a moment later. “Why are you here to see me, Luhan?”  
  
Luhan smiled, so innocent that what lurked underneath could only be the opposite. Baekhyun felt a chill run down his spine.  
  
“Well,” Luhan said, the same pure smile on his face. “I suppose I just wanted to tell you that I’m rather sick of you right now.”  
  
Baekhyun stiffened, staring at Luhan doe-eyed. That wasn’t what he had expected.  
  
“You know, back in July, I was working with Chanyeol on this shoot somewhere in Prague when he got this really curious call,” Luhan said pensively. Baekhyun frowned, not understanding what this had to do with Luhan not liking him. Luhan’s lips twitched into something that looked more a smirk than a smile at the face Baekhyun was making. “The call was from a man named ‘Kyungsoo,’ or so I heard.” Baekhyun blinked, trying hard not to show too much surprise on his face. Luhan’s smirk widened, but his eyes were bitter. “And this Kyungsoo person, distraught, said one word that made Chanyeol fly into panic.” Luhan lost his smile, and only ire stood stark on his beautiful but cold features.  
  
“Do you want to know what that one word was?” Luhan asked Baekhyun, eyes narrowing into resentful lines. Without waiting for a reply, Luhan answered, “The word was ‘Baekhyun.’”  
  
What...?  
  
“With just that one word, Chanyeol tossed aside everything - his job, the photoshoot,  _me_  - to go and find _you_  in Japan, because Kyungsoo couldn’t reach you and had ‘a bad feeling,’” Luhan said, sneering as he did air quotes.  
  
Baekhyun couldn’t have masked the shock had he tried. Chanyeol had done all of that for him? He...hadn’t known...  
  
“And you know what happened when Chanyeol got back from Japan?” Luhan continued. By now, the rage Luhan was emitting was practically  _tangible_  within the office. “He wasn’t Chanyeol anymore. He was just this broken shell of a person he once was. And  _you_  were the one who made him like that.”  
  
“I think you’re just exaggerating,” Baekhyun said, clenching his jaw. He couldn’t imagine a Chanyeol like that - one that wasn’t smiling or one that wasn’t strong and focused. Chanyeol had morals and aspirations that would’ve enabled him to get over Baekhyun’s departure from his life. Surely Chanyeol wouldn’t break so easily?  
  
And yet the image of Chanyeol, so heart-breakingly defeated, flashed in his mind.  
  
“I suppose it doesn’t matter if you believe me or not,” he said icily; his eyes were just as chilly as his voice. “Anyway, I should get to my point now.”  
  
“Stay away from Chanyeol. He’s starting to finally improve, and one look at you could shatter all the hard work he’s put into forgetting you.” Luhan smiled, and the raging blizzard within the room disappeared. “Thanks for your time, Mr. Byun. I’ll take my leave now.”  
  
When Luhan left, Baekhyun turned in his chair to stare out at the city beyond the glass window. He raised his hand to push a piece of hair that had fallen into his eyes, but when he noticed that his hand was trembling, he dropped it back down into his lap, fisting it into the material of his pants.  
  
Stay away from Chanyeol? He’d only managed to do that for not even a month, and the time away was already driving him crazy. How was he supposed to do that indefinitely?  
  
Baekhyun groaned, dropping his head forward.  
  
He wasn’t sure what he wanted anymore. Maybe it was time to start reevaluating himself.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **October  
England**  
  
Kyungsoo and Baekhyun had a tradition every October.  
  
October, according to Kyungsoo’s mother, had been the month their friendship began. So every year on the fifth of October, they celebrated their ‘anniversary.’  
  
This year was Kyungsoo’s turn (Kyungsoo had even years, and Baekhyun had odd years) to surprise Baekhyun. All Baekhyun knew was that they were in England, but any information besides that was lost on him, seeing as he had on a blindfold.  
  
“‘Soo,” Baekhyun whined, fingering the cloth covering his eyes with a childish pout. “Where are we going?”  
  
Kyungsoo’s disembodied laugh floated to him, mysterious and somehow just a tad bit scary.  
  
“You’ll see,” was the only cryptic answer Baekhyun got. Baekhyun shivered as his teeth worried at his bottom lip, wondering why he felt nervous at that.  
  
“Guh,” Baekhyun uttered grumpily, leaning his head against the cool window of the car. He drummed his fingers against his thigh, impatient. A nervous energy filled him, leaving his anxious and insecure. On impulse, he asked Kyungsoo, “You aren’t taking me to some scary thing again, are you? Cause if you are, I think you should just -”  
  
“Don’t worry, Baekhyun,” Kyungsoo cooed. “I promise it’s nowhere near scary. You’ll even like it!”  
  
For some reason, that only served to alarm Baekhyun more.  
  
  
  
  
  
When they finally arrived, Baekhyun heard the driver and Kyungsoo get out. Silence filled the car before his door opened up, and he was carefully lead out of the car.  
  
Kyungsoo’s warm, steady hands on his shoulders were his only guide as he was maneuvered around, slowly but steadily. Up one step, two, take a right, then walk straight.  
  
Every once in awhile, Baekhyun would trip on an invisible bump or crack, and Kyungsoo would help him up with a snigger. Kyungsoo was enjoying this power over Baekhyun thing way too much.  
  
The walking continued on.  
  
It was a good thing that the season wasn’t too cold yet, because the time they spent outside walking would’ve frozen Baekhyun by the time they got to the building.  
  
The inside of the building was warm and smelled pleasant. Baekhyun breathed a sigh of relief, smiling. Well, it didn’t  _smell_  scary, at least. He frowned at the thought. What if it turned out to be like one of those Febreze commercials, though?  
  
Hands left his shoulders and went to the blindfold around Baekhyun’s eyes, deftly untying the knot.  
  
Baekhyun had to blink when he could suddenly see again - the indoors was dim, but it felt like he hadn’t seen any light in  _years_ , so it took some getting used to again.  
  
“Where are we?” Baekhyun asked in confusion, glancing around the area filled with large, beautiful photographs. He narrowed his eyes when a foreboding feeling struck him; some of the pictures looked oddly familiar. A few pictures of people in France, a shot of the Eiffel Tower or two; one beautiful picture had a man’s bottom portion of his face, chin tilted up as the Eiffel Tower glowed around him. White clouds streamed from the man’s mouth, and Baekhyun almost instantly recognized who the man was.  
  
Was that a picture of... himself? His heart skipped a beat from the connotations.  
  
“This -” Kyungsoo gestured around them. “- is a gallery exhibit of a photographer you love.”  
  
Baekhyun slowly turned to Kyungsoo, heart racing in his chest.  
  
“Who’s the photographer?” he asked softly, his breath shallow. Looking around the photos closest to him, he had a suspicious feeling he already knew the answer to his question. He inhaled, trying to calm himself to no avail.  
  
“Chanyeol Park,” Kyungsoo said simply. He watched Baekhyun intently, as if waiting for something to happen.  
  
Baekhyun bit his lip, glancing around again, before nodding in acceptance. His feet moved on their own, carrying him across the gallery.  
  
There - a photo taken when he and Chanyeol were eating lunch in England - and there - a photo taken of a swirl of fish back in the aquarium. Baekhyun ran through the photos, taking in all the details and the memories that came with them.  
  
He smiled unconsciously when he saw a picture of himself - again, only the bottom half of his face down was visible - laughing, a piece of lettuce from the sandwich stuck in his teeth. Those days had been so happy and carefree; Baekhyun could almost feel all the emotions again when he closed his eyes.  
  
He opened his eyes and continued inside, moving deeper into the building. Pictures of Prague, of Germany, of Austria, of Poland, each one more beautiful than the rest. He kept going, walking steadily, until the last photo was left.  
  
Baekhyun slowed to a stop, gazing at the photo in front of him as his jaw fell open.  
  
This time the picture held his whole face, each detail clear. Baekhyun had gotten used to the photos where his face wasn’t fully there that seeing himself staring back was a shock.  
  
In the photo, he was gazing at the camera -- at  _Chanyeol_  -- with a face red from the cold, and a smile Baekhyun himself didn’t think he could pull off. But that wasn’t what shocked him; no, what shocked him was the love so bright and apparent in his eyes.  
  
That was when Baekhyun knew he couldn’t hide from the truth anymore, not when it was staring him in the face. He was in love with Chanyeol -- had been in love with Chanyeol even back in England, had been in love with Chanyeol since who knew when.  
  
And the relief he felt at finally acknowledging his feelings brought unshed tears to his eyes. He turned to Kyungsoo, who had been silently following him, and told his best friend the thing that had been plaguing his thoughts and dreams.  
  
“I love Chanyeol.”  
  
Kyungsoo smiled and replied, “I know.”  
  
  
  
  
  
Baekhyun wanted to meet up with Chanyeol as soon as possible, to tell him that Baekhyun’s chest ached every time he thought about him - to tell him that he  _loved_  him. However, as he looked at the phone cradled in his hands, he realized he had to do something else to take care of before he could confess to Chanyeol.  
  
He rooted through his contact list, happy that his secretary had added in new contacts (and happy that his secretary took names and phone numbers of everyone who visited him during office hours in the first place), and highlighted a name. He hit call, closing his eyes as he listened to it ring.  
  
“ _Hello?_ ” someone asked. He sounded different from the last time Baekhyun had talked to him - less angry and mad. “ _Who is this?_ ”  
  
“This is Baekhyun Byun,” he replied, staring sightlessly at the wall. “Do you have a minute to talk? Can we meet?”  
  
“ _...not right now,_ ” the other replied cautiously. “ _Why?_ ”  
  
“I need to talk to you about something. Are you free anytime soon?” Baekhyun paced around before finally deciding to sit down.  
  
There was a pregnant pause, and Baekhyun hoped that the man wouldn’t end up hanging up on him.  
  
Finally, the man sighed.  
  
“ _Let me look at my schedule._ ” Another pause. “ _I’m free next month, but I’ll be in China._ ” Baekhyun exhaled in relief, slouching in his seat.  
  
“That’s okay,” he said, a smile spreading across his face. “I’ll go to you.”  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **November  
China**  
  
Baekhyun rubbed his hands together, from the cold or from nervousness, he didn’t know. His leg jittered up and down, and he couldn’t stop himself from glancing around. He checked his watch for the  _n_ th time in the past ten minutes he had been waiting; the slow-moving hands mocked him.  
  
“You’re looking quite impatient there,” a voice greeted him. Baekhyun glanced up at his visitor, standing up out of habit. Luhan gazed back at him steadily.  
  
“Hey,” Baekhyun greeted unnecessarily. His palms were sweating, so he wiped them off on his jeans absently. Luhan said nothing in reply, gazing at Baekhyun with those dark eyes of his, something inscrutable on his face.  
  
Baekhyun returned his stare directly. For some reason, it felt like he was being challenged. It was a childish notion at best, but it meant a lot to him.  
  
Baekhyun couldn’t -  _wouldn’t_  - back down this time.  
  
Luhan glanced away first, eyes flickering to glance at some children running around in the streets. Feeling a sense of victory, Baekhyun followed Luhan’s line of vision. The children ran (one with a cloth around her eyes) around in a cute, nonsensical game of what looked to be tag, faces full of an innocent joy that only a child could have.  
  
Their laughter filled the air, giddy and high off of life. Baekhyun wondered how it felt to be that happy.  _Would_ he ever feel that happy?  
  
An image of Chanyeol’s smiling face flashed in his mind’s eye, and something inside of him whispered, _Yes_. He stopped his lips from twitching upward into a small smile.  
  
“You had something to tell me?” Luhan asked, breaking the silence between the two. Baekhyun blinked, turning his attention back to the other man. Luhan looked uncomfortable, arms crossed defensively over his chest. He put up a good front, Baekhyun thought, except that it was easy to distinguish the sadness in Luhan’s brown eyes.  
  
“Can you speak Mandarin?” Baekhyun asked, and smiled when Luhan blinked in surprise.  
  
“I would hope so,” Luhan said wryly, giving a grudging smile. He still hadn’t turned away from watching the children. “I lived in Beijing for a few years during my childhood, so it’d be sad if I didn’t.”  
  
“Hm,” Baekhyun said. He formulated the words in his mind, words that he had been saying to himself during the past month in just about every language possible. Slowly, articulating each syllable, he said in Mandarin, “I’m in love with Chanyeol.” He didn’t know why he felt the need to say it in the Chinese language, but there was a first time for everything.  
  
Luhan didn’t seem too surprised. All he did was raise an eyebrow at Baekhyun’s accent.  
  
“Shouldn’t you be telling that to Chanyeol?” Luhan asked, irritated. A brief smile of relief flew onto his face before disappearing like lightening, vanishing fast enough to confuse Baekhyun. “Why are you telling that to _me_?”  
  
“Because you said you’re his best friend,” Baekhyun said, his face open and honest. “And I want to get his best friend’s approval to confess to him, to  _love_  him.” Not that Baekhyun wouldn’t confess to Chanyeol if Luhan told him no, but it was the thought that mattered. Because of Luhan, Baekhyun was able to move forward; through his reevaluation of himself and his life, Baekhyun was able to finally accept himself for who he was, and who he loved.  
  
Not just anyone could have made him do that but Luhan, Chanyeol’s  _best friend_ , did, and it meant the world to Baekhyun.  
  
In a way, Baekhyun was thanking Luhan as well. Baekhyun knew that Luhan was in love with Chanyeol. Even now the fact was obvious. But the day Luhan had stormed into Baekhyun’s office to snap him out of his months-long daydream with harsh words and concealed pleas, Luhan had put aside his own feelings for Chanyeol so his best friend could be happy.  
  
Luhan snorted, rolling his eyes as he began to talk away, and called over his shoulder, "Don't waste your time with me when you should be talking to Chanyeol. He's been waiting for you."  
  
Baekhyun couldn’t hold back a smile, knowing that was all the approval he needed.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **December  
France**  
  
Baekhyun stood outside the coffee shop, ignoring the people looking at him warily as he debated on whether to actually go in or not.  
  
Just a door and a few tables separated him from his goal. It all felt like a dream. He’d wanted this meeting for so long that it stupefied him just thinking about how it might actually come true. Of course he wanted to go in - wanted it so much that he practically burned with it - but now the doubts were getting to him, keeping him in place.  
  
He tried to move but his feet were glued to the concrete. He bit his lip and tried to summon the courage to pull the door open.  
  
From the outside, Baekhyun could see Chanyeol sitting at a lone table. Chanyeol kept glancing up from his cup of coffee to stare out the big window to Baekhyun’s left, looking for someone - looking for  _him_.  
  
Baekhyun sucked in a breath, mustered all the bravery he had in him, and pulled open the door. Bulldozing his way through the people and inanimate objects, he stopped right in front of the table. Chanyeol looked up at him with wide-eyes. They stared at each other before Baekhyun promptly collapsed into the first empty chair near him, just about every drop of courage used up.  
  
“Ah,” Chanyeol said, shocked, as his hands fluttered around Baekhyun uselessly. “B-Baekhyun?”  
  
“Sorry,” Baekhyun said, wincing. He had hit his shin on the way in somewhere and now it throbbed like hell. He hated bruises. “Just give me a moment.”  
  
Chanyeol nodded, eyes still scanning Baekhyun in concern. It struck a chord in Baekhyun - Chanyeol was always worried about him, even when they weren’t actually on speaking terms.  
  
Baekhyun pulled himself together.  
  
“So,” he said, twiddling his thumbs as he looked down at the table.  
  
“So,” Chanyeol repeated.  
  
“Thanks for coming today,” Baekhyun babbled. He didn’t really know what to say.  
  
“No problem,” Chanyeol said, nodding his head.  
  
“...”  
  
“...”  
  
And sitting there across from Chanyeol, not talking or laughing or smiling or blinking or even breathing, was just about the most awkward thing Baekhyun had ever been graced to experience. Baekhyun wasn’t used to the new silence between them, even after months of avoiding Chanyeol.  
  
He looked up and let his eyes trace the straights and curves of Chanyeol’s face. He looked better than the last time Baekhyun had seen him, Baekhyun noted happily. His face wasn’t as gaunt and lined with sleepless nights as it had been.  
  
Baekhyun’s eyes dropped to Chanyeol’s lips - remembered how they felt against his own, so rough yet so very,  _very_  soft. He flushed at his thoughts, dropping his line of sight quickly before Chanyeol could notice.  
  
“So, um... how are you?” Baekhyun finally managed to ask. He couldn’t take the silence anymore, and Chanyeol wasn’t helping one bit. He raised his eyes to look at Chanyeol, who stared back at him with the strangest bemused expression Baekhyun had seen on his face. Chanyeol even looked, dare Baekhyun say it,  _amused_. Baekhyun squinted his eyes at Chanyeol suspiciously.  
  
“I’m okay,” Chanyeol said, lips twitching upwards into an entertained smile. “You?”  
  
“So-so,” Baekhyun replied, shrugging. He still couldn’t stop scrutinizing the way Chanyeol was smiling at him. Did he have something on his face?  
  
They lapsed back into silence. They eyed each other. Somehow, the air between them had turned playful.  
  
“I saw your gallery in England,” Baekhyun said, rising to the challenge. He smirked in success when Chanyeol blinked, startled. The life in Chanyeol’s eyes dimmed warily and Baekhyun mentally hit himself. He hadn’t meant to run Chanyeol off like that.  
  
And in the same way the playfulness had come between them, it vanished just as easily.  
  
“Did... you enjoy it?” Chanyeol asked, picking his words with a guardedness that made Baekhyun close his eyes and count to ten. He needed patience; if he snapped at Chanyeol now, he wasn’t sure what would happen since their current friendship - relationship? - was on the rocks. Baekhyun opened his eyes again.  
  
“Yeah...” Baekhyun said, smiling faintly. He tried to pour as much meaning into the words as possible. “Yeah, I really did.” Chanyeol visibly swallowed.  
  
“That’s good,” Chanyeol said quietly, and Baekhyun had to strain his ears to hear Chanyeol over the loud voices around them.  
  
Baekhyun wanted to yell in frustration when silence came between them again.  
  
“Okay, look,” Baekhyun said, clenching his jaw as he hoped to not screw up. Here goes nothing, he thought. “I called you to meet me here because I wanted to tell you something.”  
  
“I got that much,” Chanyeol interrupted (quite cheekily, if you asked Baekhyun), and Baekhyun could almost _see_  their relationship mending together again. He wanted to sigh in relief; he didn’t, though. He just continued.  
  
“I...love you,” Baekhyun said, gazing into the eyes that he had come to know and love within the past year. “I love you and I wanted you to know that. I don’t know when I actually fell in love with you - I think it was sometime during our stay in England - but I do, and I just...” Baekhyun paused, recollecting his chaotic thoughts. Chanyeol stared at him, his face awfully blank. Baekhyun lowered his eyes so that he wouldn’t have to see that expression on the face he adored so much, swallowing. “I’m sorry that I made you suffer so much. I kept running away from my feelings, thinking that they’d go away, but they never did. They only grew in me, to the point that I couldn’t eat or sleep or even  _work_  -” Baekhyun laughed to himself bitterly, “- without thinking about you. I tried so hard to get rid of them - to throw them off to sea and watch them fade into the horizon…but they always floated back.”  
  
Baekhyun’s hands were trembling, so he clasped them together in an effort to get them to stop.  
  
”I really just love you,” he whispered. “And I’m sorry. I hope that one day you’ll find it in yourself to forgive me for the things I put you through.”  
  
He bowed his head, staring numbly at the table. Chanyeol was silent - had been silent throughout Baekhyun’s whole confession - and Baekhyun just wanted to hear him say something... _anything_. Even if it was just to hear a rejection.  
  
Rejection was okay, he told himself bravely. Rejection was...okay...  
  
Gentle hands touched his own tentatively, slowly loosening the steel clasp his right and left hand had on each other. Baekhyun couldn’t believe it, and even thought he was dreaming for a second; he couldn’t raise his head in fear of the dream dissipating. When his hands came undone, Chanyeol’s hands laced through them, and the moment was just so beautiful and perfect that Baekhyun wanted to freeze it forever. Baekhyun’s hands clutched at Chanyeol’s, unwilling to let them go.  
  
He slowly looked up. Chanyeol stared back, eyes roaming Baekhyun’s face as if he were taking a mental picture of Baekhyun to keep safe within his mind.  
  
Baekhyun waited for Chanyeol to speak desperately, wishing and hoping and wanting and -  
  
“I’m not sure if I can forgive you right now for running out on me like that,” Chanyeol said softly, gazing down onto where their hands touched. Baekhyun felt his world stop at those words and forced himself to breathe, closing his eyes. Chanyeol’s hands were warm against his.  
  
Rejection was okay, he reminded himself again. Except... he hadn’t known it would hurt this much. He began to pull his hands back.  
  
His jaw clenched when Chanyeol refused to let his hands go.  
  
“ _But_ ,” Chanyeol continued, a small smile in his voice. Baekhyun’s head shot up, eyes searching Chanyeol’s face hopefully. Chanyeol offered him a smile. Baekhyun held his breath. His heart was going out of control. “I can try, for you. It’ll just take some time. Are you willing to wait for me?”  
  
A sense of elation made Baekhyun’s jaw drop open and nod eagerly, eyes wide. He couldn’t speak - he kept trying to talk but no sound would come out of his mouth. Chanyeol grinned at him, and the sight was so familiar that it just made Baekhyun want to tackle Chanyeol into a hug. He held back though, instead letting a smile spread across his own features.  
  
“Wanna say that out loud?” Chanyeol teased. Baekhyun frowned, huffed, and punched Chanyeol in the arm. How dare he ruin the moment!  
  
“Ouch!” Chanyeol laughed. “I forgot what a mean, abusive person you were.”  
  
Baekhyun couldn’t stop himself from laughing along with Chanyeol even if he had tried.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
 **January  
South Korea**  
  
Baekhyun shivered as he pulled his scarf up over his mouth. His face was numb and he couldn’t feel his nose or ears anymore. A quick glance around told him that only a few had braved the weather (it was practically blizzarding – yes, blizzarding was a word that existed in Baekhyun’s vocabulary) to come outside, and no one was just standing around like he was.  
  
Then again, they didn’t have to wait for a stupid, big-eared dumb dumb like Baekhyun did.  
  
“Who’s bright idea was it to meet out here?” Baekhyun muttered to himself, jumping up and down in place in a lousy attempt to get warm. “Oh, that’s right, it was -”  
  
His phone rang, blasting some Girl’s Generation out into the wintery scene. With regret, he took one hand out of his warm pocket to grab his phone, taking with the call with quickly numbing hands.  
  
“Hello?” he asked, and white steam left his mouth. He felt oddly like a dragon.  
  
“ _Baekhyun?_ ” Kyungsoo asked him. Soft party music played in the background, and people laughed, and it just seemed so  _warm_ , and for a second Baekhyun actually felt jealous not being at the business party he was supposed to have attended that night. “ _Where are you?_ ”  
  
“Out on the cold streets feeling like my fingers are about to freeze off thanks to a certain somebody calling me,” he told Kyungsoo, teeth chattering.  
  
“ _What are you doing out on the streets?_ ” Kyungsoo asked incredulously. “ _You’re supposed to be attending this function with me! You’re leaving me to die by hungry, carnivorous beasts!_ ”  
  
“Oops, sorry,” Baekhyun said, not feeling sorry at all. Except he was. But that was only because he was too cold to understand what he was thinking.  
  
“ _Ugh,_ ” Kyungsoo grumbled at him.  
  
Baekhyun opened his mouth to tease Kyungsoo but then arms wrapped around his middle, pulling him against a tall, warm body. Baekhyun knew who it was automatically.  
  
“Sorry, ‘Soo,” he said absently, already turning around. “Gotta go.” He cut off Kyungsoo’s protest with a press of his thumb.  
  
Chanyeol grinned at him, arms still wrapped snuggly around Baekhyun’s waist. His entire face was red from the cold, and the sight was just so endearing that Baekhyun leaned up on his tip-toes to kiss Chanyeol’s nose, uncaring of who could potentially see it. Well, not that anyone smart was on the streets anyway.  
  
“Hey,” Chanyeol said huskily, wiggling his eyebrows. Baekhyun smothered a grin - Chanyeol was just trying too hard to be sexy. “How was your day today?”  
  
“Well,” Baekhyun said, scrunching up his face in thought. “It could have been better if I hadn’t been told to wait for someone out in this ridiculously cold weather.” However, with Chanyeol near him, Baekhyun was starting to feel warmer already. He didn’t admit that to Chanyeol though.  
  
“Sorry,” Chanyeol said, immediately concerned. “I didn’t make you wait that long, did I?”  
  
Baekhyun laughed, waving off Chanyeol’s worry. “Not too long,” he said. “And besides, you can do something to make it better.” He smiled suggestively. Chanyeol raised an eyebrow, amused.  
  
“And what is that?”  
  
“Warm up my lips,” Baekhyun told him solemnly, puckering up his own lips as an explanation. Chanyeol snorted and grinned, before leaning down and giving Baekhyun the kiss he had wanted. Their lips slid over each other’s, hot and cold at the same time, before Chanyeol broke the contact. Baekhyun swiped his tongue over his lips, feeling them tingle softly.  
  
Chanyeol’s eyes were dark as he pulled away, loving, and the sight stole Baekhyun’s breath just looking at it. He would never get tired of seeing it.  
  
Baekhyun’s ears and nose were still numb, and his face felt like it was going to ice over soon, but it was all worth it.  
  
Glancing up at Chanyeol, he could only smile with cold, frozen cheeks.  _Everything_  was worth it.  
  
And that was all that mattered.

 

**fin.**


End file.
